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MERIAN, MARIA SIBYLLA, Leningrad Watercolours, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich: Helen and Kurt Wolff 1974 ,Vol.I&II. Copy no 759/1750.,folio, vellum spines, includes dust cover jacket. Note: Maria Sibylla Merian, also known as Anna Maria Sibylla (1647 - 1717) was German-born naturalist, artist and explorer. At a time when it was not customary for women to pursue careers in the sciences, she became a pioneering entomologist. Her work changed the field of entomology forever, for she was one of the first naturalists who cultivated live insects, which gave her powerful insights into their natural history and behaviours. Contrary to the prevailing notion of the time that insects were spontaneously created, Merian discovered that many insects went through distinct developmental transformations. Through her accurate and realist illustrations of insects and their food plants, she was the first to document these life stages for the public. Merian is now recognised as one of the best insect (and flower) scientific illustrators of her day – and indeed, of all time.The year of Merian’s death, her paintings were purchased for Peter I, tsar of Russia. Her daughter, Dorothea Maria subsequently was summoned to St. Petersburg, where she worked as a scientific illustrator for the tsar and became the first woman to be employed by the Russian Academy of Sciences. (SLES1051) {MM} Property Title:From a Sharon Connecticut Home Measurements:19 1/2, 15 1/2, 4 1/2 Condition:Wear to dust jacket cover and toning to binding, otherwise good